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Minnesota Music Notes celebrating noteworthy songs, artists, and musical performances

Minnesota Music Notes: Stories from First Avenue | celebrating noteworthy artists, people and moments that shaped the history of Minnesota’s Mainroom First Avenue

Minnesota Music Notes: Seasons 1 & 2 | celebrating noteworthy songs, artists, and musical performances from Minnesota

MN Music Notes: Keith Secola

Born and raised in Cook, Minnesota on the Boise Forte Reservation, musician Keith Secola has an intimate relationship with Anishinabe culture.  Producer Daniel Zamzow looks at the genre Secola calls “Native Americana” is a musical journey that spans the past, present, and future.

The Organ Player’s Son

Stephen Paulus’ music has played at president’s funerals and won Grammy’s. Britt Aamodt tells another story, of the organ concerto in which the St. Paul composer was able to tip his musical hat to dear old dad.


Orange is the New Greycoats Single

The Greycoats get their music before the public through touring and social media. But Britt Aamodt’s story examines a third route: through music placement on popular television shows, like Orange Is the New Black.

Maria Schneider’s Season of Crime

Jazz conductor and composer Maria Schneider was in the midst of a new album when David Bowie rang up. Britt Aamodt tells the story behind 2014’s “Sue (Or in a Season of Crime).”

The Rembrandts Are There for You

Phil Solem had already put out two albums with his duo The Rembrandts when the call came from a Hollywood producer came. Britt Aamodt looks at the genesis of a TV theme hit.

Lojo Russo: From RenFest Minstrel to Solo Albums

Like a lot of working musicians, Lojo Russo can remember a period of life by what gig she was playing. The guitarist and songwriter gathered her lifetime of experience on her 2013 solo album No Scars, No Stories. Britt Aamodt takes a listen.


Chastity Brown Drives Slow & Enjoys the Moment

Chastity Brown’s last album had come out in 2012. The clock was ticking. But the singer-songwriter scrapped her new recordings to start over. Britt Aamodt has the story on the Brown’s 2017 album Silhouette of Sirens.

Band of Writer: Cats Laughing

Steven Brust and Emma Bull are better known as fantasy writers. But in the 1980s, these co-founders of the Minneapolis writer’s group The Scribbles also co-founded the experimental music group Cats Laughing. Here’s Britt Aamodt with the story.

Boiled In Lead Meets Death on Hennepin

Boiled In Lead debuted as a Minneapolis Celtic rock band on St. Patty’s Day in 1983, an annual concert tradition their fans, the Leadheads, have come to expect. In 2008, Boiled In Lead celebrated their 25th anniversary with an album a song about Death’s visit to a popular Minneapolis avenue. Britt Aamodt has the story.

The Poet, the Sitar and the Tabla Player

David Whetstone was going to be a guitar player until he heard the Beatles and Rolling Stones use sitar. After tragedy struck, Marcus Wise went on a journey that led him to becoming a master tabla player. Britt Aamodt looks at how these Minnesota musicians ended up sharing the stage with one the state’s greatest poets.

Tall Paul Offers Prayers in a Song

Enrolled in the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, Tall Paul grew in Minneapolis, listening to hip-hop and catching episodes of 106 & Park on BET. He started rapping as a teen but his music suddenly went viral when he incorporated the Ojibwe language into the lyrics of “Prayers in a Song.” Here’s Britt Aamodt with the story.

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McKnight FoundationMN Legacy